Foot-protector.



' PATENTED JULY 21, 1908.

M. SOHULTZ. I

TOOT PROTECTOR.

AYPLIOATION FILED MAB..23, 1908.

IIUIIIIIIIIIIIIMI MAX SCHULTZ, OF BUFFALO, NEW YORK.

FOOT-PROTECTOR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application led March 23, 1908. Serial N o. 422,645.

Patented July 21, 1908.

\ To allwhom tt mag/concern:

CII

Beitknown that I, MAX ScnULTz, a citizen of the United States, residingat Buffalo, inthe county of Erie and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Foot-Protectors, of which the following `is aspecification.

This inventifdn relates to the foot protectors which are worn within a sh'oe for relievmg corns, bunions and swollen Aor dislocated joints from pressure and irritation. A protector of this kind is shown and described in Letters Patent of the United States No. 840,717, granted to me January 8, 1907.

. The protector of this patent comprises a tip adapted to fit over the front portion of the foot and a shield secured to the'tip and provided with pads arranged to rest 'against the foot on the front and rear sides of the bunion.

One of the objects of my resent invention is to provide the shield with an adjustable pad which can be readily reduced in thickness to accommodate it to the particular foot on which the protector is to be worn, thusy adaptmgthe same protector to corns, bunions or swellings of dlfferent sizes and avoiding lthe necessity of manufacturing'and carrying in stock a large variety of such protectors with diEerent-sized ads.

A further object o the invention is to rovide a protector of this kind which will shield the top of the foot, so as to relieve corns and top bunions from pressure and irritation.

In the accompanying drawings: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a gaiter containing the improved protector, the gaiter being partly broken away to expose the protector.

ig. 2 is a horizontal section of the protector, taken centrally through the pads. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the protector showing the shield at the top of its tip. Fig. 4 is a vertical longitudinal section of the lastnamed protector. section of the laminated pad, showing a modification thereof.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, A indicates the titp of the protector which fits over a number o the toes of the foot and which is preferably provided with ventilating openings a. B ndicates the shield secured at its front end to l one' sifde of the tip and curved to conform to` the side of the foot to be protected, as shown in the drawings and in the Letters Patent herelnbefore referred to. In the construc- Fig. 5 is a longitudinaltion shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the shield 1s applied to the inner side of the foot to protect a side bunion or swollen toe joint.. C .the opening or recess-Which receives thebunion and D, D1 the ads or cushions applied to the and in rear of said opening for relieving the bunion from the pressure ofthe shoe. As A'shown in Fig. 2, the rear pad D1 preferably is comparatively thin and composed of a single layer or thickness of wool, felt or other suitable cushioning material. The front pad D is of similar material and consists of a plureadily separated, so that one or more of the inner layers can be readily detached from the remaining layer or layers for reducing or adjusting the thickness of the pad to suit the particular foot to be relieved. For this urpose, the several layers of the pad are united for a part of their length or at one end or edge, referably the end nearest the opening connected so t at the free en of one or more 'of the layers can be conveniently seized and stripped'from the remaining layers for thinning'jthe pad as required. In the preferred construction of the pad, its layers are glued by stitching'or otherwise, if `desired As shown in the drawings, the pads are preferabl thinned toward the openin en the invention is embodied in a side shield, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, only the front pad D need be made of layers, because a thin pad of a single thickness or laper is usually sufficient for the rear pad D1. n the construction shown in Figs. 3 and 4 the shield B1 is secured to the top of the ti A1 for protecting a top bunion or a corn. en the improved pads D2 are applied to such a top-shield, they are both nated, as shownin Fig. 4.

Instead of making the pad of separate layers' glued -or otherwise secured to gether at one end or edge, it may be constructed 'of a solid piece of cushioning material lslitted for a art of its length to form readily-detachable ayers d1, as shown in Fig. 5..'

It will be understood from the foregoing that the improved protectors are supplied to shoe-dealers with adjustable pads o maximum thickness, and if a dealer wishes to fit a rotector to a foot requiring a thinner ipad lie simply tears off one or more layers o `the pad to reduce it to the required thickness.

rality of layers d, say three, which can be' C,whi e their o posite or front o'rti'o'ns'a're distogether, but they may be fastened together inner side of t e shield immediately'in front I preferably lamia This adjustable construction of the pads simplifies the manufacture of the protector and does away With the necessity on the part of dealers of carrying a large number of protectors with different sized-pads.

While the adjustable pads are herein shown in connection With a shield having a toe-tip, they may be applied to shields having no such tips,if desired.

I claim as my invention:

l. A foot protector, .comprising a shield and a pad ap lied to the shield and'consisting of a pluraity of layers united for a part of their length'and disconnected for the remainder of their length, substantially as set forth.

2. A foot protector, comprising a shield having an opening, and a pad applied to the' shield adjacent to said opening and consisting rof a plurality of layers, said layers being esame united at the ends nearest the opening and disconnected at their opposite ends, substantially as set forth.

3. A foot protector, comprising a shield having an opening, and a pad applied to the shield adjacent to said opening and constructed of increasing thickness from the opening toward the op osite end of the pad, the pad consisting of ayers which are disconnected at the thick end of the pad vand united at the opposite end thereof, substantially as set forth.

Witness my hand this 19th day of March7 1908.

his MAX SCHULTZ.

markf Witnesses:

C. F. GEYER, ANNA HEIGIs. 

